Opt Out is a national movement in which participating parents, students and teachers rally against a federal education policy they say has distorted public education and corrupted the examination process. (Shutterstock photo)

When he started to research the testing industry, he came across "Making the Grades: My Misadventures in the Standardized Testing Industry" by Todd Farley.

The book is about Farley's 15-year career writing and scoring exams in the testing industry.

"It's well-written and funny and shows what a scam the whole thing is. I was laughing, then I realized it's really not that funny because it's affecting kids," Hornberger said.

His own documentary research convinced him the only entity that benefits is the testing industry.

"The test makers and education reformers are taking this to the bank," he said.

The kids, on the other hand, are not benefiting, Hornberger said.

"Nobody will ever ask you what you got on the Keystone Exams," he said.

If teachers and students can't find the value in a test, that's a problem, Hornberger said.

"Administrators, in some respect, find even less value than the kids. They say they're giving the tests because they have to," he said.

When asked how his bosses have reacted to his opt-out campaign and new documentary, he said simply, "I've become that guy."

For some students, he has become the go-to guy for explaining how to opt out of state tests.

He directs kids and their families to websites with information about opting out, noting the requests coming more frequently.

In Berks County last year, about 50 students opted out of state assessments, compared to seven in 2013.

"It just took some gutsy parents to say, 'We're not going to do this,'" Hornberger said.

One of the main things he gleaned from making the documentary is parents agree education needs to "change drastically."

"Education can't be run like a business. It's not the same kind of animal," he said.

Many Opt Out supporters favor a system similar to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

The Philadelphia-based commission is a voluntary, non-governmental association that offers accreditation services to colleges and universities.

Volunteers, who have backgrounds in education, both evaluate schools and give suggestions for improvement.

"What a great system. But I guess we don't want that because it's not cut and dry like a number is," Hornberger said, sarcastically.

To critics who might ask how to evaluate teachers without tests, he said, "We need administrators who hold teachers accountable.

"Administrators need to grow a spine. People always say it's so hard to get rid of bad teachers. That's an absolute myth. There's a process. If administrators don't have the guts to go through the process, then what can you do?" Hornberger said.